In the Name of the Children gives an unflinching look at what it's like to fight a never-ending battle against an enemy far more insidious than terrorists: the predators, lurking amongst us, who seek to harm our children. During his 30-year career with the FBI, Jeff Rinek worked hundreds of investigations involving crimes against children: from stranger abduction to serial homicide to ritualized sexual abuse. Those who do this kind of work are required to plumb the depths of human depravity, to see things no one should ever have to see - and once seen can never forget.

3 out of 5 stars

Tedious listening...

By
Jeny Kennedy
on
09-26-18

Evil Has a Name

The Untold Story of the Golden State Killer Investigation

By:
Paul Holes,
Jim Clemente,
Peter McDonnell

Narrated by:
Paul Holes,
Jim Clemente

Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins

Unabridged

Overall

5 out of 5 stars
7,683

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
7,034

Story

5 out of 5 stars
7,004

For his victims, for their families and for the investigators tasked with finding him, the senselessness and brutality of the Golden State Killer's acts were matched only by the powerlessness they felt at failing to uncover his identity. Then, on April 24, 2018, authorities arrested 72-year-old Joseph James DeAngelo at his home in Citrus Heights, Calif., based on DNA evidence linked to the crimes. Amazingly, it seemed, evil finally had a name. Please note: This work contains descriptions of violent crime and sexual assault and may not be suitable for all listeners.

A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer - the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade - from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case.

4 out of 5 stars

Wonderful Listen to Scare Yourself in the Dark

By
Trixie Runnin'
on
03-04-18

I: The Creation of a Serial Killer

By:
Jack Olsen

Narrated by:
Kevin Pierce

Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
371

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
335

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
334

In February 1990, Oregon State Police arrested John Sosnovke and Laverne Pavlinac for the vicious rape and murder of Taunja Bennet. Pavlinac had come forth and confessed, implicating her boyfriend and producing physical evidence that linked them to the crime. Authorities closed the case. There was just one problem. They had the wrong people. And the real killer wasn't about to let anyone take credit for his kill.

5 out of 5 stars

The last of Jack Olsen

By
Jodi Pearce
on
11-19-18

The Beast I Loved

A Battered Woman's Desperate Struggle to Survive

By:
Robert Davidson

Narrated by:
Kevin Pierce

Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
259

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
236

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
236

June Briand shot four bullets into her husband's head and was sentenced to 15 years to life. This is the shocking, true story of survival - and the intense bond June shared with her pathologically violent husband, a monster who physically and sexually tortured, degraded, and dominated her so relentlessly she refused to believe he was dead even after she killed him.

5 out of 5 stars

Beyond Beast . . .

By
Polly Poizendem
on
07-14-18

Reasonable Doubt

A Shocking Story of Lust and Murder in the American Heartland

By:
Steve Vogel

Narrated by:
Keith Sellon-Wright

Length: 16 hrs and 48 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
93

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
81

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
83

A mother and her three young children are found hacked to death in their beds. The apparent weapons, an ax and butcher knife, are found nearby. A month later, the husband and father, who was away on a business trip when the bodies were found, is accused of the killings. A successful businessman and devoted member of a fundamentalist religious group, David Hendricks has the total support of his extended family. Police paint a darker picture, and prosecutors face the daunting task of convicting him on a case based on completely circumstantial evidence.

5 out of 5 stars

AMAZING

By
Anonymous User
on
11-10-18

In the Name of the Children

An FBI Agent's Relentless Pursuit of the Nation's Worst Predators

By:
Jeffrey L. Rinek,
Marilee Strong

Narrated by:
P. J. Ochlan

Length: 13 hrs and 10 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
221

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
195

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
194

In the Name of the Children gives an unflinching look at what it's like to fight a never-ending battle against an enemy far more insidious than terrorists: the predators, lurking amongst us, who seek to harm our children. During his 30-year career with the FBI, Jeff Rinek worked hundreds of investigations involving crimes against children: from stranger abduction to serial homicide to ritualized sexual abuse. Those who do this kind of work are required to plumb the depths of human depravity, to see things no one should ever have to see - and once seen can never forget.

3 out of 5 stars

Tedious listening...

By
Jeny Kennedy
on
09-26-18

Evil Has a Name

The Untold Story of the Golden State Killer Investigation

By:
Paul Holes,
Jim Clemente,
Peter McDonnell

Narrated by:
Paul Holes,
Jim Clemente

Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins

Unabridged

Overall

5 out of 5 stars
7,683

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
7,034

Story

5 out of 5 stars
7,004

For his victims, for their families and for the investigators tasked with finding him, the senselessness and brutality of the Golden State Killer's acts were matched only by the powerlessness they felt at failing to uncover his identity. Then, on April 24, 2018, authorities arrested 72-year-old Joseph James DeAngelo at his home in Citrus Heights, Calif., based on DNA evidence linked to the crimes. Amazingly, it seemed, evil finally had a name. Please note: This work contains descriptions of violent crime and sexual assault and may not be suitable for all listeners.

A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer - the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade - from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case.

4 out of 5 stars

Wonderful Listen to Scare Yourself in the Dark

By
Trixie Runnin'
on
03-04-18

I: The Creation of a Serial Killer

By:
Jack Olsen

Narrated by:
Kevin Pierce

Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
371

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
335

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
334

In February 1990, Oregon State Police arrested John Sosnovke and Laverne Pavlinac for the vicious rape and murder of Taunja Bennet. Pavlinac had come forth and confessed, implicating her boyfriend and producing physical evidence that linked them to the crime. Authorities closed the case. There was just one problem. They had the wrong people. And the real killer wasn't about to let anyone take credit for his kill.

5 out of 5 stars

The last of Jack Olsen

By
Jodi Pearce
on
11-19-18

The Beast I Loved

A Battered Woman's Desperate Struggle to Survive

By:
Robert Davidson

Narrated by:
Kevin Pierce

Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
259

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
236

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
236

June Briand shot four bullets into her husband's head and was sentenced to 15 years to life. This is the shocking, true story of survival - and the intense bond June shared with her pathologically violent husband, a monster who physically and sexually tortured, degraded, and dominated her so relentlessly she refused to believe he was dead even after she killed him.

5 out of 5 stars

Beyond Beast . . .

By
Polly Poizendem
on
07-14-18

Reasonable Doubt

A Shocking Story of Lust and Murder in the American Heartland

By:
Steve Vogel

Narrated by:
Keith Sellon-Wright

Length: 16 hrs and 48 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
93

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
81

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
83

A mother and her three young children are found hacked to death in their beds. The apparent weapons, an ax and butcher knife, are found nearby. A month later, the husband and father, who was away on a business trip when the bodies were found, is accused of the killings. A successful businessman and devoted member of a fundamentalist religious group, David Hendricks has the total support of his extended family. Police paint a darker picture, and prosecutors face the daunting task of convicting him on a case based on completely circumstantial evidence.

5 out of 5 stars

AMAZING

By
Anonymous User
on
11-10-18

Inconvenience Gone

The Short Tragic Life of Brandon Sims

By:
Diane Marger Moore

Narrated by:
Chris Monteiro

Length: 7 hrs and 8 mins

Unabridged

Overall

3.5 out of 5 stars
14

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
12

Story

4 out of 5 stars
12

The four-year-old Brandon Sims had not been seen since July 3, 1992, when he attended a birthday party with his 20-year-old mother, Michelle Jones. For years, Jones lied to her friends about Brandon, telling some that he was living with his father and others that he was staying with his grandmother in another state. When Brandon’s father, who had been in jail, came looking for Brandon, Michelle’s shocked friends confronted her. She confessed that Brandon was dead. She repeated her story of how Brandon died to a detective. The detective didn’t believe her story.

5 out of 5 stars

Tragic story, excellent storytelling

By
Mimi
on
12-14-18

Targeted

A Deputy, Her Love Affairs, a Brutal Murder

By:
M. William Phelps

Narrated by:
Kevin Pierce

Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
84

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
79

Story

4 out of 5 stars
79

When her missing boyfriend is found murdered, his body encased in cement inside a watering trough and dumped in a cattle field, a local sheriff's deputy is arrested and charged with his murder. But as New York Times best-selling author and investigative journalist M. William Phelps digs in, the truth leads to questions about her guilt. In his first full-length, original true-crime audiobook for WildBlue Press, Phelps delivers a hard-hitting, unique experience, immersing listeners in the life of the first female deputy in Oglethorpe County, Georgia.

5 out of 5 stars

Did She or Didn't She . . .

By
Polly Poizendem
on
03-01-18

Blood in the Snow

The True Story of a Stay-at-Home Dad, His High-Powered Wife, and the Jealousy That Drove Him to Murder

By:
Tom Henderson

Narrated by:
Paul Michael Garcia

Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
216

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
197

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
197

In Washington Township, Michigan, on Valentine's Day, 2007, Stephen Grant filed a missing persons report on his beloved wife, Tara. The stay-at-home father of two was beside himself with despair. Why would Tara abandon him and their family? Was she involved with another man? Stephen's frantic, emotional search for Tara made national headlines, and the case was featured on
Dateline among other television shows and news outlets. But key elements in Stephen's story still weren't adding up....

5 out of 5 stars

Mortifying!

By
Ellen
on
02-19-18

A Dark Night in Aurora

Inside James Holmes and the Colorado Theater Shootings

By:
William H. Reid MD MPH

Narrated by:
William H. Reid MD MPH

Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
134

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
125

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
121

On July 20, 2012 in Aurora, Colorado, a man in dark body armor and a gas mask entered a midnight premiere of The Dark Knight Rises with a tactical shotgun, a high-capacity assault rifle, and a sidearm. Soon twelve were dead and fifty-eight were wounded. A Dark Night in Aurora uses the twenty-three hours of unredacted interview transcripts never seen by the public and Reid’s research to bring the listener inside the mind of a mass murderer. The result is chilling, gripping study of abnormal psychology and how a lovely boy named Jimmy became a killer.

5 out of 5 stars

Captivating

By
Debra Tremoulis
on
09-02-18

The Fact of a Body

A Murder and a Memoir

By:
Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich

Narrated by:
Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich

Length: 10 hrs and 38 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
656

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
611

Story

4 out of 5 stars
609

Before Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich begins a summer job at a law firm in Louisiana, working to help defend men accused of murder, she thinks her position is clear. The child of two lawyers, she is staunchly anti-death penalty. But the moment convicted murderer Ricky Langley's face flashes on the screen as she reviews old tapes - the moment she hears him speak of his crimes - she is overcome with the feeling of wanting him to die. Shocked by her reaction, she digs deeper and deeper into the case.

3 out of 5 stars

Memoir of Molestation

By
Margaret
on
05-22-17

To the Bridge

A True Story of Motherhood and Murder

By:
Nancy Rommelmann

Narrated by:
Nancy Rommelmann

Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
335

Performance

3.5 out of 5 stars
305

Story

4 out of 5 stars
304

On May 23, 2009, Amanda Stott-Smith drove to the middle of the Sellwood Bridge in Portland, Oregon, and dropped her two children into the Willamette River. Forty minutes later, rescuers found the body of four-year-old Eldon. Miraculously, his seven-year-old sister, Trinity, was saved. As the public cried out for blood, Amanda was arrested, convicted, and sentenced to thirty-five years in prison.

3 out of 5 stars

Difficult subject matter; not a fan of the writing style nor narration

By
DS
on
07-07-18

Unanswered Cries

A True Story of Friends, Neighbors, and Murder in a Small Town

By:
Thomas French

Narrated by:
Mikael Naramore

Length: 13 hrs and 31 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
519

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
464

Story

4 out of 5 stars
459

On a warm Florida evening, Karen Gregory saw a familiar face at her door. What the beautiful young woman could not know was that she was staring into the eyes of her killer - a savage monster who would rape her, stab her to death, and leave her battered body on the floor outside the bedroom. Detectives frantically sifting through the evidence were tormented by one disturbing question after another....

5 out of 5 stars

Great Writing

By
Phaedrus
on
02-03-18

Submerged

Ryan Widmer, His Drowned Bride and the Justice System

By:
Janice Hisle

Narrated by:
Janice Hisle,
Mike Landis

Length: 13 hrs and 34 mins

Unabridged

Overall

3 out of 5 stars
13

Performance

2 out of 5 stars
10

Story

3.5 out of 5 stars
9

Based on exclusive new information, Submerged, a compelling true crime drama, exposes hidden angles of a case that captivated and divided an ordinary American community, tore apart two families, and tested the criminal justice system. Compelled by conscience and curiosity, former Cincinnati Enquirer reporter Janice (Morse) Hisle - who covered the saga of Ryan and Sarah Widmer from the start - returns 10 years later to dig deep to tell the untold story

4 out of 5 stars

Narrator is TERRIBLE - but good book.

By
Monica
on
12-11-18

Head Shot

By:
Burl Barer

Narrated by:
Kevin Stillwell

Length: 12 hrs and 53 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
14

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
11

Story

4 out of 5 stars
11

Paul St. Pierre was an alcoholic driven by an urge to kill all the time. He bullied his younger brother, Chris, into committing unspeakable acts. His childhood friend, Andrew Webb, took drugs, talked to skulls, and dreamed about eating human flesh. It was only a matter of time before the trio terrorized a quiet neighborhood near Tacoma, Washington, with the brutal murders of innocent victims caught in a storm of senseless rage. Then the twisted triad turned on each other - over money. Paul shot Andrew in the stomach. Chris called the cops. But with tortured individuals like these, justice opened the doors to more surprising revelations.

5 out of 5 stars

Well Written

By
CRF
on
01-25-19

Little Shoes

The Sensational Depression-Era Murders That Became My Family's Secret

By:
Pamela Everett

Narrated by:
Coleen Marlo

Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
48

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
41

Story

4 out of 5 stars
41

In the summer of 1937, a California crime stunned an already grim nation. Three little girls were lured away from a neighborhood park to unthinkable deaths. After a frantic week-long manhunt for the killer, a suspect emerged. Justice was swift, and the condemned man was buried away with the horrifying story. But decades later, Pamela Everett, a lawyer and former journalist, starts digging, following up a cryptic comment her father once made about losing two of his sisters. Everett unearths a truly historic legal case that included the genesis of modern sex offender laws and the last man sentenced to hang in California.

5 out of 5 stars

Masterful presentation of secrets and crime case!

By
deb
on
05-31-18

Blood Justice

By:
Tom Henderson

Narrated by:
Paul Michael Garcia

Length: 14 hrs and 46 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
75

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
72

Story

4 out of 5 stars
72

In 1991, flight attendant Nancy Ludwig checked in to an airport hotel near Detroit. The next morning she was found gagged, raped, and tortured - her throat slit with such rage that she was nearly decapitated. Her husband Arthur never gave up hope that the future would bring enough evidence to close the case. But it was the past that held the clue. In 1985, 55-year-old Margarette Eby, a music professor, met the same grisly death at her cottage in Flint, Michigan. The case went cold - until six years later when the victim's son Mark came upon the story of Nancy Ludwig's slaying.

5 out of 5 stars

Wow !!! Nothing left out

By
Keiran McLaren
on
08-15-18

Dead and Buried

By:
Corey Mitchell

Narrated by:
Steven Jay Cohen

Length: 11 hrs and 53 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
41

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
36

Story

4 out of 5 stars
38

Rachel Newhouse disappeared on the night of November 12, 1998. Only months later, in the same town, Aundria Crawford lost her life in an act of unimaginable violence. As authorities worked to find clues, parole officer David Zaragoza paid a routine visit to one of his charges - Rex Allan Krebs, a violent serial rapist who'd served only 10 years of a 20-year sentence. After sending Krebs back to jail for violating his parole, Zaragoza found a key chain belonging to one of the victims. An intensive search led to the gruesome discovery of buried remains near Krebs' secluded cabin.

5 out of 5 stars

Well Written!

By
txammug
on
09-10-18

Publisher's Summary

Two Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists tell the riveting true story of Marie, a teenager who was charged with lying about having been raped, and the detectives who followed a winding path to arrive at the truth.

On August 11, 2008, 18-year-old Marie reported that a masked man broke into her apartment near Seattle, Washington, and raped her. Within days police and even those closest to Marie became suspicious of her story: details of the crime didn't seem plausible, and her foster mother thought she sounded as though she were reciting a Law & Order episode. The police swiftly pivoted and began investigating Marie. Confronted with inconsistencies in her story and the doubts of others, Marie broke down and said her story was a lie - a bid for attention. Police charged Marie with false reporting. One of Marie's best friends created a web page branding her a liar.

More than two years later, Colorado detective Stacy Galbraith was assigned to investigate a case of sexual assault. Describing the crime to her husband that night - the attacker's calm and practiced demeanor, which led the victim to surmise "he's done this before" - Galbraith learned that the case bore an eerie resemblance to a rape that had taken place months earlier in a nearby town. She joined forces with the detective on that case, Edna Hendershot, and the two soon realized they were dealing with a serial rapist: a man who photographed his victims, threatening to release the images online, and whose calculated steps to erase all physical evidence suggested he might be a soldier or a cop. Through meticulous police work the detectives would eventually connect the rapist to other attacks in Colorado - and beyond.

Based on investigative files and extensive interviews with the principals, A False Report is a serpentine tale of doubt, lies, and a hunt for justice, unveiling the disturbing reality of how sexual assault is investigated today - and the long history of skepticism toward rape victims.

Well written, well researched, and profound

I am a victim of childhood sexual abuse as well as a survivor of rape while serving in the military. I want to state that first so you know, as a reader, where my perspective comes from. This, as well as Missoula and A History of Misogyny, are accurate both factually and emotionally.

While reading this book, I was triggered. But the respect and care that was taken to tell the story with enough detail to give an accurate picture of what rape is, as well as the dexterity to express the wide range of reactions to being raped was what made this an overall cathartic read.

I'm not going to go into details so as not to ruin the journey carefully and tactfully crafted by the authors. I am going to say that this book is profound and a clear and concise answer to the question, often posed in bad faith, "What about false reports?" and "What about the innocent men?" and "What about innocent until proven guilty?". It goes a step further and explains why the philosophy of believing the victim first is important and necessary in the investigation of intimate crimes.

Finally. Marie, if you ever read this, thank you. Thank you for your bravery. Thank you for your honesty. I reacted to my rape the same way you did. I told my story over and over again, like you did. I have a deadpan way of describing my childhood. I also had nobody believe me until well after the damage was already done. I too was hurt again by the people who were supposed to help me. Hearing that you're out there, somewhere, and living your life has breathed some life back into me. Thank you for telling me that I'm not alone. Thank you.

Riveting

A riveting book that revolves around a woman who reports being raped, is doubted by the police and her friends, forced to recant, charged with making a false report, and basically made to plead guilty. But she’s not making up the story. Everything is fascinating on so many levels because everyone is interviewed: the woman, the rapist, the detective who charged her with making a false report, the detectives who caught the rapist, other victims. At the end is a rage-inducing description of the history of women not being believed about rape claims, as well as the institutional mechanisms that keep it happening even today. P.S. If you’ve read Jon Krakauer’s “Missoula” and are wondering if you want to tackle another book about rape, please know that they cover completely different territory. Grade: A

A must read/listen

I don’t normally do reviews but this story is a rape victim’s worst nightmare next to being assaulted in the 1st place. Great journalism of put all sides into the story. As a woman being raped is our worsts nightmare then to not be believed is like being rapped all over again...... My only question is how do you come back from that.

Wow!! Everyone should read

I finished this as an audiobook in four days—I obsessively listened—and before I was even close to the end, I ordered a hard copy of this book to circulate among everyone I know who works in law enforcement.

I am a prosecutor. I assisted with a rape case a few months ago. The description of what victims go through was spot on. Although that portion was familiar to me, I learned a lot, too. This book will change the way I deal with rape cases and victims.

A MUST Read

If you could sum up A False Report in three words, what would they be?

Brutally Real Cases

What did you like best about this story?

The way that the authors attach all the victims it did not feel that I was listening non fiction in some points it seems I was listening a novel, also some of the stories did not sound real, reality was too hard for me to believe (maybe because it was also my first True Crime book)